Buffalo, New York – March 8, 2013 – Nationwide hundreds of events will take place in celebration of AmeriCorps Week 2013! Locally, Buffalo AmeriCorps members from The Belle Center will host two community service projects in one day. Of 45 Buffalo AmeriCorps members, half will spend the day tutoring Buffalo Public School K-4th grade students. The other half will help conduct a Commodore Perry Choice Neighborhoods Needs Assessment with Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority residents.

Both service projects begin at 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m., March 12, 2013 at Buffalo Public School 54 Dr. George E. Blackman School of Excellence at 2358 Main St. Buffalo, NY 14214 and Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority Commodore Perry Choice Neighborhoods Buffalo, NY 14204.

At school #54, Buffalo AmeriCorps members will volunteer in classrooms to help students prepare for their New York State Assessments.Corps members will work one-on-one and in groups with students to help refine the skills needed for their success in English-Language Arts & Mathematics. Buffalo AmeriCorps members will also share their personal stories about service and educational attainment to encourage the next generation to serve their community during a why “I Serve” session.

During the service project at Commodore Perry Choice Neighborhoods, Buffalo AmeriCorps members will go door-to-door and help conduct a Needs Assessment. The Assessment will help to identify the needs of Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority residents in that area to ultimately increase the measures taken to provide greater avenues towards self-sufficiency for residents.

“I Serve because I gain a greater sense of purpose and value when I volunteer,” said Naomi Porter, Buffalo AmeriCorps member. “AmeriCorps Week is awesome because it gives us time to volunteer and reflect on our commitment to serving our community.”

Every year the power of 80,000 AmeriCorps members from the Corporation for National and Community Service is felt in communities nationwide through direct impact service. Nationally, this year’s theme of “AmeriCorps Works” centers around three focus areas, the recipients of service, the people who serve and the larger community and nation.

AmeriCorps week is a time when a direct focus and awareness is placed on the positive impact of AmeriCorps in communities nationwide. During AmeriCorps Week members countrywide will host events that focus on issues such as disaster services, economic opportunity, education, environmental stewardship, healthy futures, veterans and military families.

About The Belle Center:The Belle Center is a diverse non-profit community center that bridges the gaps to success for youth and families. The 56,000 sq. ft. facility is located on the Lower West Side of Buffalo, NY and has over three decades of service to the community. With over 15 premier services, The Belle Center serves infants through senior citizens and operates on a cradle to college model. Youth and young adults are offered pathways to success and are encouraged to complete higher education, a trade and/or the military. To learn more visit www.thebellecenter.org.

About Buffalo AmeriCorps:Buffalo AmeriCorps is service program of the Corporation for National and Community Service based at The Belle Center in Buffalo, N.Y. The program unites persons ages 17 and above in a year of full-time rigorous service during which they work in diverse teams to address societal needs, particularly in schools and neighborhoods. While putting their idealism into action these community leaders work as tutors and mentors to school children, reclaim public spaces, organize after-school programs, build capacity in organizations and create civic engagement programs for elementary, middle school and high school students. Buffalo AmeriCorps is unaffiliated with other AmeriCorps programs in Buffalo and is its own entity based at The Belle Center. To learn more visit www.thebellecenter.org/americorps.